The five Commanders stood in awe.
They looked up at the fifty-foot colossus carved from the mountains of ice.
"We need to avoid this thing!" Commander Kling shouted.
"Mount your steeds! If we don't bypass him now, we'll be crushed!"
The Commanders nodded, spurring their Solar horses into a desperate gallop.
But the Titan let out a guttural growl that shook the heavens.
With a massive limb, it struck the ground, creating a localized earthquake.
The shockwave was so violent that the Commanders were thrown off their horses.
They hit the snow hard.
"What now? We're pinned!" Commander Yui cried out.
Suddenly, the massive Titan launched itself into the air.
The Commanders scrambled, sprinting for their lives.
The impact of the Titan's landing was colossal.
The sound traveled through the entire kingdom of the Eternal Freeze.
In the dungeons, Elysia felt the tremor.
In the palace, Queen Sharley paused.
"What was that sound?" the Queen asked, her eyes narrowing.
She immediately signaled her guards.
"Go! Find out what is happening at the borders!"
On the battlefield, the Titan prepared to unleash a devastating sonic roar.
But before it could draw breath, Commander Lak moved.
He drew his shimmering white sword.
He sank into a low, coiled posture to build momentum.
Then, he vanished in a flash of white light.
He surged upward like a bolt of lightning, his blade whistling.
With a single, clean arc, he decapitated the ice behemoth.
The mountain-sized head slid off.
The entire Titan collapsed into a heap of lifeless boulders.
Lak landed softly as the dust settled.
"He ended it in one strike..." Commander Elvis muttered, stunned.
"This kid is on another level."
"Let's move," Lak said, his voice calm but cold. "Time is slipping away."
"Leaving so soon? At least say hello first."
The voice froze them in their tracks. It was hauntingly calm.
"Oh, come now... at least apologize."
"You just took away my only means of travel—and my only talkative friend."
The Commanders turned back toward the fallen mountain.
A dark flash descended from the peaks, landing gracefully before them.
A man stood there in obsidian-black robes, clutching a mysterious book.
"My name is Wysar," the man said with a thin smile.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, though I'm afraid you must pay for what you've done."
The Commanders formed a defensive line.
"Hey, kid," Elvis barked. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"
"Who I am doesn't matter," Wysar replied, flipping a page in his book.
"Call me a wanderer. But what you did... that wasn't very 'heroic'."
"You killed him without a thought. He was my only companion."
"It was a monster that attacked us!" Lak countered.
"Don't call him a monster," Wysar's voice turned sharp.
"He was like a child protecting his home. His name was Lialol."
"Listen, kid," Jems stepped forward. "We don't care. Let us pass."
"I'll let you all go," Wysar said, his eyes locking onto Lak.
"Except for the white-haired brat. He killed Lialol."
"For the sake of my friend's honor, he must die."
"Stay back," Lak commanded his team. "I'll handle this alone."
"But the mission, Lak!" Yui argued. "If we fight together, it'll be faster."
"I SAID STAY BACK!" Lak roared. "He's dangerous!"
Suddenly, Wysar flicked his hand.
He tossed a glowing drop of flame toward Lak with impossible speed.
A solar energy user? Lak thought, his heart racing. Is he a traitor?
As the flame approached, it transformed into a jagged shard of ice.
Lak dodged it, but Wysar was already there—inches from his face.
Wysar lunged with an ice blade.
Lak performed a spectacular backflip, parrying the slash with his white sword.
An intense exchange of steel followed.
Sparks of solar fire and shards of ice flew as they traded blows.
Wysar swung a strike at Lak's head; Lak ducked.
Wysar summoned a second sword of pure Solar energy, aiming for his legs.
Lak barely escaped, jumping laterally to clear the blades.
Then, Wysar opened his book.
He traced a finger over a page, and a nightmare emerged.
It was a monster made of swirling black gas with glowing red eyes.
Lak slashed at the gas, but his sword passed through it like smoke.
The creature reformed instantly.
Lak was exhausted.
In a final movement, the gas monster lunged.
It disappeared directly into Lak's mouth, surging into his stomach.
"Hahaha!" Wysar laughed, looking toward the sky.
"See that, Lialol? I've avenged you."
Wysar turned back to Lak, his expression cold.
"Start counting your remaining seconds, Commander."
"That gas is heading for your Solar Core. It will feed on your energy."
"Once you're dead, it will return to me."
In a blink, Wysar vanished into a flash of light.
Lak stumbled, his face turning pale.
The white of his eyes began to dim, stained by a creeping darkness.
The other Commanders rushed to his side.
"Lak! Are you okay?" Kling asked with genuine concern.
"Don't... don't worry about me," Lak coughed, gasping for air.
"The mission comes first. I can still walk. Move out."
Meanwhile, Liuke had been walking with Queen Sharley for ten minutes.
He gazed around in disbelief.
He saw houses of shimmering ice and children playing in the snow.
It was a functioning society. Families, merchants, a real world.
"How does it feel to see this, Liuke?" Sharley asked softly.
"I... I never thought there was a whole world on this side," Liuke admitted.
"These people... they're just normal people."
"I have something important to tell you, Liuke," Sharley began.
But before she could finish, a small child ran straight into Liuke.